State Designation Programs - Vermont
State Designation ProgramsState Planning Manual - Module 2November 2018
3 Why Designation?4 The Five Designations5 Which Designation Fits?6 Village Centers8 Downtowns10 New Town Centers12 Neighborhood Development Areas14 Growth Centers16 Benefits of State Designation17 Municipal Benefits19 Landowner/Developer Benefits21 Applying for Designation21 Designation Requirements22 Address Designation in the Municipal Plan23 Application Process23 Designation Expiration and Renewal24 One Page Overviews24 Vermont Downtown Development Board25 Comparison of Designation Program Requirements(Matrix)26 Overview of Designation Program Benefits (Matrix)Hyperlinks are embedded throughout this manual and are all listed on page 27
windsorWhy Designation?Vermont’s landscape of compact centers surrounded by rural farm and forest land is integral to our economy,community spirit, and way of life. To help promote this traditional settlement pattern, the state created aunique framework to recognize and “designate” these centers and offer an array of tools and incentives to keepthem economically strong and vital. This approach not only builds Vermont’s economy – but helps achieverelated goals like protecting the working landscape and our historic and natural resources.Across the state, the designation programs have successfully channeled public and private resources to restorehistoric buildings, create safe and pleasant pedestrian streets, revive commercial districts, plan for thoughtfulgrowth, and build new housing. Communities have used the programs to reverse declines in their grand list,get the most from their substantial public investments in infrastructure like roads, sidewalks, and wastewatertreatment, and create places where businesses can thrive and families can live close to jobs, schools, shops,and transportation options.The state has five different designation programs to help communities of all sizes address local issues likerestoring community vitality, expanding economic development opportunities, financing infrastructureimprovements, and creating more housing opportunities near work or transit. Many municipalities havemaximized their benefits by layering multiple state designations. / Why Designation?planning manual November 20183
The Five DesignationsCore DesignationsVillage CentersSupports revitalization activities in small to medium-sized historic centers with at least onecivic and/or commercial building.DowntownsSupports revitalization activities in medium to large-sized historic centers with thecommunity capacity to support a non-profit organization or municipal commission thatdevelops and implements a comprehensive revitalization strategy.New Town CentersProvides a framework to create compact, walkable, mixed-use centers for municipalities thathave no designated downtown or village center. Successful designations require professionalplanning staff and a governing body that is committed to making public infrastructure andbuilding investments.Add-On Designations (must have a core designation to qualify):Neighborhood Development AreasSupports housing development inside or within walking distance to the core designation. Themunicipality must have adopted plans, policies, and regulations that support housing andsmart growth. Developers have the option to apply for designation separately or jointly withthe municipality.Growth CentersHelps shape areas beyond the commercial center with a framework of policies and regulationsto ensure that 20 years of future development will enhance the vitality of the designatedcore, while protecting farm and forest land outside the growth center. Municipalities musthave adopted plans, policies, and regulations that ensure walkable, compact, mixed-usedevelopment. Successful designations require professional planning staff and a governingbody that is committed to making public infrastructure and building investments.Each state designation offers tailored benefits to help communities implement their municipal plans andachieve their goals (see Benefits Matrix). Although municipalities apply for designation, some of the benefitsflow directly to property owners to encourage private investment in the designated area.In addition to financial resources, designated municipalities receive specialized training and support fromstate staff to help them succeed. It’s important to note that while the state designation programs have made adifference in many Vermont communities, dedicated local leadership is required to motivate stakeholders totake action.4 / The Five Designationsplanning manual NOVEmber 2018
Which Designation Fits?Which designation will best serve the needs of your community? This is largely determined by the issues youface, the scale and capacity of your municipality, and the aspirations expressed in your municipal plan.The process starts by identifying the core commercial or business district—the concentrated centers wherepeople, buildings, and activities come together. Once the core is designated, there may be interest indesignating areas beyond the core to encourage housing or more comprehensive community planning.Designation offers a process for state, local, and regional entities, as well as private business owners anddevelopers, to come together and discuss common concerns and to form an agreement about where andhow to invest in the future. Staff from the Department of Housing and Community Development and fromyour regional planning commission are available to answer your questions and assist you with process. Onsite community meetings are required before pursuing any application for designation. These meetings areintended to answer community questions and assure the application process goes smoothly.The following pages provides more detail on each of the state designation programs to help you determinewhich program is the right fit for your community and its needs. Additional information on the designationprograms is included in the application guidelines for each program.montpelier / The Five Designationsplanning manual November 20185
Village CentersPopulation of Municipalitieswith village centers631823191144010,000 9K-10K8K-9K17K-8K216K-7K5K-6K4K-5K3K- 4K2K-3K1K-2K 1000Vermont law defines avillage center as “the coreof a traditional settlement,typically comprisedof a cohesive mix ofresidential, civic, religious,commercial, and mixeduse buildings, arrangedalong a main street andintersecting streets that arewithin walking distancefor residents who livewithin and surroundingthe core.” (24 (V.S.A. §2793a) Consider villagecenter designation if thecommunity has an existingtraditional village withat least one commercial orcivic building.Vermont’s incredibly diverse village centers spanfrom hamlets of hundreds to bustling towns of over10,000. (Source: Census)# MUNICIPALITIESVillage centers are generally mixed-use areas that servethe surrounding population with goods and services,civic and religious functions, jobs and residences.Village centers must be the traditional historic centerwith at least one civic or commercial building.TOWN POPULATIONSize of village centersAlmost three quarters of Vermont’s village centersare smaller than 50 acres.152 village centersacross vermontThe boundaries of designated village centers rangein scale and size from tiny hamlets with a cluster ofhomes and a storefront and meeting house to largervillages with a concentration of commercial and civicbuildings along a main street. Some village centers,such as Jamaica and Fairlee, have only a handful ofshops and public buildings while others, such asHardwick and Woodstock, have a larger critical massof buildings either arranged along a principal mainstreet or organized around a central community space,such as a village green or common. Municipalities withmultiple villages may obtain separate village centerdesignation for one or more villages.See the application guidelines for complete details onthe application requirements and the benefits of villagecenter designation.7%100 ACRES21%50-100 ACRES72% 50 ACRESLand Use MixVillage Centers include a diverse mix of residential,commercial and institutional services.(Source: E-911) 1%7%INSTITUTIONAL INDUSTRIAL9%MULTI E FAMILYRESIDENTIAL6 / The Five Designationsplanning manual NOVEmber 2018
hardwickCase Study: HardwickDesignation Leads to Hardwick’s RevivalVillage Center Designation, 2003Several years ago, Hardwick’s Main Street, like so many in communities around Vermont, was in a state ofdecline. Many of its buildings were run down, underused, or even condemned. To add to the issues, a tragicfire gutted a prominent building in the heart of town. Instead of tearing it down to create a parking lot or park,the community chose to restore this historic building and create new business and housing opportunities. Thiskey decision not only signaled a new direction for Hardwick—it helped show other small towns that savingone historic building can spur the redevelopment of an entire community.In Hardwick, seven buildings were rehabilitated with the help of tax credit-financing and another five arenearing completion. Nearly 625,000 in state tax credits leveraged over 7.5 million in outside investmentto date, helping jump-start new business, create quality housing, create jobs, and bring new vitality to thecommercial district. What’s more, a study of property values (grand list) in the village center demonstratesthat public investment to improve these buildings is quickly returned in increased property taxes. Downtownand village center tax credits help close the financial gap, made the projects financially viable, sparkedcommunity revitalization, cemented a sense of place, and brought vacant and abandoned buildings back ontothe tax rolls. Based in this success, Hardwick is now passing plans to apply for downtown designation, whichbrings additional benefits to the community. / The Five Designationsplanning manual November 20187
1010,000 9K-10K8K-9K7K-8K06K-7K0315K-6K / The Five Designations34K-5K813K- 4KSee the application guidelines for complete details on theapplication requirements and the benefits of downtowndesignation.42K-3KThe boundaries of designated downtowns vary in sizeand are largely driven by the historic developmentpattern in the community. Poultney and Wilmingtonhave relatively small downtown districts while Rutlandand Bennington’s districts are substantially larger.551K-2KVermont law defines a downtown as “the traditionalcentral business district of a community that hasserved as the focus of socio-economic interaction inthe community, characterized by a cohesive core ofcommercial and mixed use buildings, some of which maycontain mixed use spaces, often interspersed with civic,religious, residential, and intersecting side streets thatare within walking distance for residents who live withinand surrounding the core and that are served by publicinfrastructure such as sidewalks and public transit.” (24V.S.A. § 2793)Communities with designated downtowns can bebig or small, but all have total populations of at least2000. (Source: Census) 1000Downtowns are larger inscale than village centerswith a higher density ofmixed-use development.The developmentpattern and form isusually compact anduninterrupted, althoughthere may be some publicspace, like a park or green,within a downtown. Multistory buildings are oftencentered in the core of thedowntown aligned along amain street with adjacentside streets. In general, thestreet level is active with23 downtownsacross vermontcommercial uses that invitepedestrian activity with retail, restaurants, and servicebusinesses and upper floors typically have office spacefor professional services and residential housing units.Downtowns provide a greater range of functions thanany other location in the region that serves as a placefor employment, shopping, worship, tourism, housing,government services, dining, entertainment, lodging,and cultural attractions. All of these activities are usuallysituated within a compact area that is easily walkablewith pathways and sidewalks that are sufficiently wide,offering interesting, attractive amenities, such as buildingfaçades, window displays, landscaping, and open spaces.Population of Municipalitieswith Downtowns# MUNICIPALITIESDowntownsTOWN POPULATIONSize of DowntownsAbout half Vermont’s downtowns are between50 and 100 acres.25%100 ACRES50%50-100 ACRES25% 50 ACRESLand Use MixA little over half the buildings in Vermont’sdowntowns are commercial buildings.(Source: E-911)1%INDUSTRIAL5%INSTITUTIONAL16%MULTI FAMILYRESIDENTIAL57%COMMERCIAL17%SINGLE FAMILYRESIDENTIAL4%GOVERNMENTplanning manual NOVEmber 2018
barreCase Study: BarreDesignation Leads to New Infrastructure, New Businesses and Jobs DowntownDowntown Designation, 2000After multiple years of economic decline in downtown Barre, the city was struggling with empty store fronts,low commercial rents, and declining property values. Turning things around took time and didn’t comewithout challenges. The city spent a decade investing heavily in the creative/tourist economy without anyresults. According to Mike Miller, the former Director of Planning, “We needed to better understand ourstrengths and weaknesses. Barre is never going to be Stowe, but what Barre has is plenty of water and sewercapacity, industrial activity, highway access, and a great stock of historic buildings with affordable rental officespace.” With those things in mind, a group of municipal officials and stakeholders identified three major goalsto help jump-start revitalization: bring 500 new workers to Barre over five years by improving the city’s imagewith investments in public infrastructure and marketing; recruiting businesses and services to meet the needsof local residents; and modernizing Barre’s existing industrial assets to attract entrepreneurs and new start-upbusinesses.Using support from the downtown designation program, over the past five years Barre was able to securealmost 20 million in public investment in the downtown spurring 45 million in private investment thathas brought 24 new businesses, reduced vacancy rates by 8%, increased commercial rental rates by 6-10dollars a square foot and attracted over 350 jobs. This investment also includes major streetscape and publicinfrastructure improvements, construction of City Place, a new state office building with commercial/retailspaces on the ground floor, and rehabilitation of several prominent downtown blocks with the help of federaland state tax credits. “Technical support through the state’s designation program helped us plan projects,identify funding sources and leverage public investment,” Steve MacKenzie, Barre’s City Manager. / The Five Designationsplanning manual November 20189
New Town Center designation is for towns without ahistoric downtown or village center, with plans for anew, mixed-use downtown, built or retrofitted to becompact and pedestrian friendly. The new town centermust be designed to be walkable, meet smart growthprinciples and have plans to include civic buildingsin the center. An existing auto-oriented shoppingmall, for example, should not be included in the newtown center unless the municipality has undertakenthe planning, adopted regulations, and identified thefinancing for redevelopment of the site.Vermont law defines a new town center as an “areaplanned for or developing as a community’s centralbusiness district, composed of compact, pedestrianfriendly, multistory, and mixed-use development thatis characteristic of a traditional downtown, supportedby planned or existing urban infrastructure, includingcurbed streets with sidewalks and on-street parking,stormwater treatment, sanitary sewers and publicwater supply.” (24 V.S.A. § 2791)Statute defines the maximum size of a new town centerboundary, based on the population of the municipality(24 V.S.A. § 2793b). The boundaries should onlyinclude those areas that have been planned as a civicand commercial core of the community and provisionsare in place to ensure walkability.See the application guidelines for complete details onthe application requirements and the benefits of newtown center designation.Population of Municipalitieswith new town centersVermont’s new town centers are in two of Vermont’slargest communities. (Source: TIONNew Town CentersSize of new town centersThe two new town centers are both around 100acres in size.106 ACRESSOUTH BURLINGTON102 ACRESCOLCHESTER2 new town centers across vermont10 / The Five Designationsplanning manual NOVEmber 2018
Case Study: South BurlingtonDesignation Leads to a New DowntownNew Town Center Designation, 2010Neighborhood Development Area Designation, 2014For over 30 years the City of South Burlington has identified the area around Dorset Street and WillistonRoad as the future City Center. Dominated by shopping centers, standalone retail and service establishments,with some office and multi-family uses, the bulk of the area was developed over 50 years ago for an autodominant lifestyle. As part of the effort to create a central downtown to support the vibrant civic life and buildcommunity pride and identity, the city sought and received a new town center designation in 2010.This designation provided the city with priority for municipal planning grants and opened the door to TaxIncrement Financing (TIF) District approval and a neighborhood development area designation. Stateand regional planning grants and public infrastructure projects facilitated by the TIF District have allowedlandowners and business owners to see the opportunities and value of investing in a compact walkable, transitfriendly, and bikeable urban center.Since the new town center designation, two high quality infill projects have been built, and one attractive 12unit housing development is underway. Many more projects are in the planning stages and will take advantageof planned city infrastructure like roads and parks and public building investments such as a library and CityHall wholly or partially financed through the TIF District. Projects will also benefit from lower developmentcosts in neighborhood development areas. In addition to supporting an increase of millions of dollars to thecity’s grand list, the designations are helping the city realize their vision of a center they are proud of. / The Five Designationsplanning manual November 201811
This designation helps lower the cost to build housingin areas within easy walking distance of the corecommercial centers — whether converting a barn orwing of a house into a ‘mother in law’ apartment ordeveloping an entirely new neighborhood.31109K-10K10,000 08K-9K07K-8K06K-7K2K-3K05K-6K04K-5K03K- 4K01K-2KNeighborhood development areas may include theentirety of the underlying state designated core as wellas areas suitable for development extending 1 4 milefrom village centers and new town centers, and 1 2mile from downtowns or within a designated growthcenter. In certain circumstances, the area may extendbeyond these distances.Vermont’s Neighborhood Development Areasare currently in medium and large Vermontcommunities. (Source: Census) 1000Within the designated areas, the program aims tohelp communities build and maintain walkableneighborhoods that are pedestrian oriented, containa mix of uses (both residential and non-residential),accommodate but manage vehicular traffic, providea variety of public spaces, have a sense of identity orplace, and connect to adjacent neighborhoods and thedowntown/ village core.Population of Municipalitieswith neighborhood developmentareas# MUNICIPALITIESNeighborhoodDevelopment AreasTOWN POPULATIONSize of neighborhood developmentareasHalf of Vermont’s neighborhood development areasare smaller than 50 acres.See the application guidelines for complete detailson the application requirements and
/ the Five DeSignationS N O 2018 7 Case Study: Hardwick Designation Leads to Hardwick’s Revival Village Center Designation, 2003 Several years ago, Hardwick’s Main Street, like so many in communities around Vermont, was in a state of decline. Many of its buildings were run down, underused,
Vermont Tax Guide for Military and National Services Step 1: Determine if you are a resident or nonresident of Vermont Most military-affiliated persons will determine residency status using the general Vermont rules that follow. A. General Rule for Resident of Vermont Generally, a person is a resident of Vermont if one of the following applies: 1.
Vermont Special Education Rules (Revised: 2013) Page 2 of 169 STATE OF VERMONT GOVERNOR Peter Shumlin VERMONT AGENCY OF EDUCATION SECRETARY Armando Vilaseca VERMONT STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 2013 Stephan Morse,
Appendix E: Vermont Health Information Technology Plan, Presentation to GMCB. Appendix F: Data Governance Charter, Green Mountain Care Board . Data Governance Implementation HIT e . Vermont Health Data Utility: Governance and Strategic Priorities Vermont Health Care Innovation Project / December 2016 5 1. Introduction The Vermont Health .
across Vermont through twelve regional academic centers and the use of technology, was founded by executive order of Governor Deane Davis. ! 1961: Vermont Legislature creates a public corporation known as the Vermont State Colleges, reinforcing the value of small colleges and building the strength of a larger public system.
Guide to Homeschooling State of Vermont Vermont Agency of Education Home Study Office 1 National Life Drive, Davis 5 Montpelier, VT 05620-2501 Secretary of Education Daniel French Staff in the Home Study Office Alicia Hanrahan AOE.homestudy@vermont.gov P: 802-828-6225 F: 802-828-6433
Vermont Department of Libraries. The award is named after Vermont’s state flower and is given annually to one of ten committee-nominated picture books that receives the most votes from Vermont children in grades K-4. This guide is meant to be a road map as you navigate the Red Clover Book Award Program in your library or classroom.
to the Vermont Uniform Securities Act 1 WHEREAS, the Vermont Uniform Securities Act (2002), codified at 9 V.S.A. chapter 150 (the "Vermont Securities Act" or the "Act"), is effective as of July 1,2006 and supersedes the Securities Act codified at 9 V.S.A. chapter 131 (the "Predecessor Act"), which is repealed effective as of July 1,2006 except .
M. Peskin and D. Schroeder, An Introduction to Quantum Field Theory This is a very clear and comprehensive book, covering everything in this course at the right level. It will also cover everything in the \Advanced Quantum Field Theory" course, much of the \Standard Model" course, and will serve you well if you go on to do research. To a large extent, our course will follow the rst section of .
